Though they say the holidays are for children, I guess I'm an exception. This season of the year excitement starts to bubble inside me. I look forward to getting together with family and friends, the special fellowship around the dinner table (more about that later!), the late-night gab fests, the brightly wrapped gifts, and the special holiday music.

Call me an incurable romantic, but it's always been this way with me. Before I was old enough to know the months of the year, I sensed that something special was about to happen when the jackets and scarves (I haven't always lived in Florida) were brought back into circulation and the days became shorter. Soon there would be a flurry of activity around the house, as letters are written and telephone calls made to family all over the country. Whose house shall we meet at this year? How many of your family can come? Who'll be in charge of planning the menus? Shall we eat at Grandma's or rent the community hall?

The first year we were married it was just my wife and me for the holidays. We both had come from rather large and rowdy families and we missed the excitement of having lots of relatives around, especially children. It's so much more enjoyable to experience the holidays through the eyes of a child.

But the holiday season can become less than enjoyable if the children, or anyone else in the family, become ill or bad tempered. This can happen when we get too much excitement and not enough sleep, when we get off our regular schedule, and when we eat too much of those rich foods that go with the season.

But God has a remedy for those holiday ailments. He suggests that we be temperate in all things (1 Corinthians 9:25). To be temperate means to stay away from anything injurious and to include the judicial use of those things that are harmless. In other words, don't even think about eating or doing the bad stuff, and go easy even on the good.

You can help prevent holiday down time in your family by doing a little strategizing before the momentum of the season sweeps everyone away. If you want this year's holidays to be memorable and healthy for your entire family, especially the children, give a little thought to the following suggestions. Remember, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure:

* Lead the way in giving thanks. Praising the Lord is a healthy thing to do. The psalmist David said this about the God: "I shall yet praise Him, [who is] the health of my countenance" (Psalm 42:11). Being thankful is not just a nice suggestion. At least 15 times in the Bible we are commanded to give thanks to the Lord. For instance, the Bible says in 1 Chronicles 16:34, "O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is good; for His mercy endures for ever." Throughout the holiday season, tell your family often how thankful you are for the things around you—for the children, for your home, for food, for friends, for freedom. Thankfulness is contagious and it gives a feeling of well-being to everyone around you. As a family activity, the children might enjoy writing out a prayer of thanks to God, illustrating it with their own art work.

* Do something for somebody else. It's been said that a person all wrapped up in himself makes a pretty small package. Comparing our "toys" with what everybody else has can make us feel discontented and complaining. Instead, why not work with your family to plan nice surprises for other people-a special card for a teacher, a bunch of flowers for the elderly neighbor, a food basket for a homeless family. By the way, these good deeds are doubly fun if they are done anonymously.

* Establish special family holiday traditions. If you don't have any family traditions, now is a good time to start. Here are some ideas to get your started: 1) serve some of your meals by candlelight, 2) sit on the sofa together and look through a family picture album, 3) read a book together just before bedtime, 4) have several cookie-making sessions with the children, 5) teach your children the words of a holiday hymn, 6) help your children produce a holiday play involving the entire family.

* Teach your children the true significance of the holidays. There' s more to the holiday season than pumpkin pie, reindeer, and party poppers. Hearts seem to soften and mellow more during this time of the year than at any other. Don't miss out on this opportunity to educate and instill reverence and respect for what you are celebrating. There is a wealth of information in the library, on the Internet, and in the Bible. Attend community activities, read to the children about the origins and significance of the holiday, plan a theme party for your children's friends, make window decorations for your home, play holiday music, let the children help in special meal preparation, and be sure to attend your church's special holiday programs.

Remember the prescription: be temperate and give thanks. Don't spend the precious holidays lying on your back, looking up at the ceiling. Grab a child and join the party. Happy Holidays from our family to yours!